Twelve Angry Men Reginald Rose

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Twelve Angry Men Reginald Rose

• Year 12 English and ESL
• Text Study
• Reading and Responding
• Ekaterina Xanthopoulos

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The true administration of justice is
the firmest pillar of good government Scales
of Justice
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Images discuss these
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And more
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Life in the1950s
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Reginald Rose

• 1920-2002 and born/grew up in New York
• Enlisted and served in WWII until 1946
• Wrote since being a teenager, for TV plays, many
  plays made into films and TV series
• 1954 first time called for jury duty
  manslaughter case eight hours before unanimous
  vote wrote Twelve Angry Men as live one-hour
  legal drama which later became a film
• Won many awards, such as Emmys

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Setting

• 1957 - A very hot summer afternoon
• In a jury room of a New York Court of Law
• Described as scarred table
• a large, drab bare room in need of painting
• Oppressive, stifling The Guard exits and in the
  silence the sound is heard of the door being
  locked.
• It has grown considerably darker in the room and
  its oppressively still.
• Jurors at times move to washroom

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Plot/synopsis

• Young man accused of murder in the first degree
  premeditated homicide
• Twelve jurors locked in a jury room to determine
  if there is a reasonable doubt
• Initially all but one juror find him Guilty but
  with discussion, arguments and persuasion all
  change to Not guilty
• Question ability of defence counsel and accounts
  of witnesses as well as use of evidence also
  strip away layers of prejudice, artifice, fancy

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What is reasonable doubt

• Reasonable Doubt is explained thusly
• That state of minds of jurors in which they
  cannot say they feel an abiding conviction as to
  the truth of the charge.
• Source Charles Montaldo
• In the play, both the jurors and audience must
  decide in the end if they agree never given
  proof of the defendants innocence 100

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GKR Guilty

• Oxford English Reference Dictionary definition
  Law adjudged to have committed a (specified)
  offence, especially by a verdict in a trial
  (1995)
• PARAPHRASE THIS MEANING
• WHAT IS YOUR MEANING?
• LIST 3 SYNONYMS and ANTONYMS

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Vocabulary add more to list
word meaning synonym
defendant
counsel
witness
prosecutor
hung jury
premeditated murder
METALANGUAGE
script
dialogue
props
stage directions
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Characters

• Why are they anonymous?
• Why are there 12 people in a jury?
• Why is the first juror called FOREMAN and what
  are his duties?
• In groups of three, quickly research and discuss
  these questions and report back to class 10
  minutes

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What motivates a character?
  Fear     Relationships   Desire
  Values/Morals     Actions   Family
  Security     Politics   Greed
  Money     Status   Power/Authority
  Love/Lust     Hatred   Gender
  Culture/History     Emotion   Understanding/Interest
  Spiritual/Religious     Ignorance   Experiences
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Themes/Ideas/Views and Values

• Justice and the court/jury system jurys
  deliberation and decision
• What is truth is it fallible?
• Memory witness accounts
• What is a fact can details be twisted?
• Prejudice
• Stereotypes and class
• Reasonable doubt VS certainty
• Historical Context McCarthyism - use of trials
  in 1950s AND use of television drama

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Genre and structure

• Drama serious play
• Realism and Naturalism explore daily life a
  slice of life 1950s movement
• Legal drama but also about interactions between
  characters
• Two acts and all characters remain on stage
  despite washroom visits
• Employs Aristotles unity of action, place and
  time less than a day

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Language and Dialogue

• Natural language patterns of era and
  geographical setting of the play
• Working-class men yet different ie some white
  collar, share cultural interest in sport and
  film same vernacular ought to be down in
  Atlantic City at that hairsplitters convention.
• Use legal terms comfortably reasonable doubt,
  defendant, counsel, evidence

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Play Techniques

• Setting description of room
• Props/sets bare, minimal
• Costume clothing of JURORs
• Stage directions what they do
• Stage of jury room and washroom
• Lighting darkening It is now darker than
  before due to weather and atmosphere of
  tension
• Sound Judges voice, etc.

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What to do

• Read the play at least twice
• Summarise in point form each scene
• Takes notes on each character
• Collect quotes and group them under headings
• Ask yourself What is the message or point of
  this play? What questions does the plot raise?
• Answer the set questions
• Vocabulary
• Reflect upon each reading and how your
  views/readings change
• Which character do you like/dislike the most?
  Why?
• How does the language in the play influence and
  position the audience? What about the stage
  directions and props?